


Paris Noir

by atypical_butch



Series: Love Crimes [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien doesn't have a kwami oof, Gen, Kwami Swap, Mystery, also an au, bear with me this could end up being a hot mess, going to be a bit gritty, i have other works to work on but screw it, sorry to those waiting on my other fic, this is what is in my head and I need to get it out of my system
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:40:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22825027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atypical_butch/pseuds/atypical_butch
Summary: The Butterfly Killer has been wreaking havoc on the citizens of Paris for the better part of a year. It started with the death of a young woman, and progressed to multiple murders carried out at once. Adrien wants to get to the bottom of what happened, and his career at the police department is hinging on it. He needs to solve the case and put the killer behind bars. Fast.Help arrives in the most unlikely people, and places. A reporter, a musician, and a mysterious vigilante clad in black.
Series: Love Crimes [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1640908
Comments: 7
Kudos: 22





	1. Flawed Evidence, Flawed Practices

Adrien thought he had seen some pretty ghastly things working this job, but the Butterfly always managed to outdo themselves.

He had been called in the early hour of the morning, his superior alerting him to a fresh set of victims. Victims. He longed for the days when the killer would only strike once. Adrien had gotten a muffin and half a cup of coffee in before the briefing at the Police Department began, and he was barely listening, his tired eyes glazed slightly as he gazed up at his boss.

“We confirmed the deaths of a small family in the 12th arrondissement, just outside of the train station. The killer was up to his usual antics, making the patriarch angry and luring him and his family into a secluded area…”

Adrien and the rest of the team had heard the drabble before, and unfortunately not much was different this time. The Butterfly had a way of charming their victims into getting irrevocably angry with them, and causing a struggle. In the beginning, the victims were more despondent and fearful at the time of their deaths. Recently, the anger was playing a big part in it.

“...and of course, we spotted the lovely little girl who keeps trying to beat us to the crime scenes, but she managed to slip away. Again.”

Lady Noire. That’s what the team had dubbed the woman. Adrien had only ever caught glances of her, but she was a rather small and petite woman, with long black hair and eyes that seemed to glint with a mischievous spirit. She was the reason any of them were getting anywhere at this point, playfully leading the force to important clues and helping them build a case, before promptly disappearing again. It was of no consequence to Adrien, but his boss was not having it.

“Agreste, earth to Agreste?”

Adrien snapped back into reality, blinking again.

“Good, you’re back in reality kid. Did you hear what I told you?”

“No, sorry. I consider myself a morning person, but this is a bit much,” Adrien answered, earning a chuckle from a few people in the room as his boss smiled slightly.

“It’s fine, it’s an early day for all of us,” he responded, straightening up again. “I want you to take care of this one, we have our hands full as it is dealing with the other messes caused by the Butterfly. Maybe you’ll run into our fair lady and get a few tips as well?”

“I will try the best I can,” Adrien said, sighing and downing the rest of his coffee. This was not going to be fun.  
\---

The drive was relatively peaceful this time, Adrien’s helping hand on an extended vacation. He preferred to work on his own when it came to things like this.

The scene was taped off, regular officers lining the parameter of the crime scene as Adrien pulled up in his car. He got out, donning a fedora and wandering through the crowd of gawkers that had amassed over the last couple of hours since the discovery. One particular reporter in the crowd immediately walked up to him.

“Excuse me, sir, are you the lead detective of this case?” She inquired, pushing her round glasses higher up on her nose. Adrien noted a rather persistent and pushy vibe to her, the woman was practically vibrating with energy at the chance of getting any exclusive information for her publication.

“I am a detective, yes,” he answered, carefully avoiding her gaze and attempting to maneuver around her. She side-stepped to stay in front of him.

“Do you suspect the victim of this crime to be yet another one of the Butterfly’s?” she pushed, Adrien scowling a bit.

“Miss, I just arrived, I have no idea what this could be,” he answered. “Please let me get to work.”

The journalist sighed, reluctantly moving out of his way, but catching his arm.

“You’re also looking for Lady Noire, aren’t you?”

Adrien glanced at her, this time, taking a pause.

“Who’s asking?”

“Alya Cesaire, I work independently,” she answered, her tone shifting to a more professional note. “I want to find out more about her, figure out how she knows so much about what’s going on. Face it, you are all scrambling for answers and she’s teasing you about it.”

This was true, and Adrien was not the least bit offended by the remark. The woman in black had given them every major break in the case they have had so far, but a lot of the pieces were missing. Adrien could admit that he wanted more answers from her, that was for sure. Before he could say anything else, Alya scribbled something in a notepad, and promptly handed him what looked like a business card.

“Look, I know what you all think of the media, but I think I could help with this,” she said, her tone frank. “Help me, and I can help you.”  
Adrien took the card, reading over it.

“I’ll consider your offer,” he said simply, looking a bit amused as he pocketed it and left her standing there. He ducked underneath the tape, heading to the scene of the crime.

Yep, it was definitely ghastly.

A butterfly, drawn in the blood of one of the victims, was haphazardly painted on the wall. All 4 victims had been brutally bludgeoned to death, but all their personal effects were present, from what the regular force could gather. Adrien knew he had to work quickly before the forensics team arrived, glancing over every victim and looking for more clues.

The team had learned a while back that the injuries were definitely the cause of death, and the weapon seemed to be a very sturdy cane-like object. The wounds were too narrow and small to be a bat, too shallow to be a crowbar, and too clean to be any other blunt object he could think of. Hammers, other improvised tools, nothing else matched. The victims had been random at first, but now that the Butterfly had gained some notoriety…

“Agreste,” one of the field officers called, and he walked over. His face was grim. “I know you can’t tell who they are from how pulp-like their faces are, but…”

He was holding a photograph that had been found by the matriarch of the family, only identifiable by the starched dress she wore. His blood froze.

“The Bazin family,” He said quietly.”

“You knew them?”

“They were family friends, my father and mother associated with them heavily during the 20s and 30s,” Adrien answered, shuddering. “Back when mother starred in films, before she died. My father is going to be devastated…”

Adrien glanced back over at the family, shuddering. The Butterfly was going after affluent families now? Should he be worried about his father? Himself? No one in Paris knew that Gabriel Agreste’s son worked in the force. He never worked under a pseudonym, he always just seemed to fly under the radar and nobody noticed him outside of his work.

“I may need to make a few phone calls,” he said abruptly, pocketing the photo as he glanced at a black blur escaping his field of vision.

So she had shown up after all. Adrien went to follow after her, wondering if he would actually get a chance to talk to her as the field officer went back to what he was doing.

After about ten minutes of chasing shadows, he was utterly alone. The alley was lined with bits of trash and an occasional scurrying rodent, but he was completely and utterly alone.

Or so he thought, as he was suddenly swept off of his feet and pushed hard against the ground by an unseen attacker. Adrien flailed helplessly as he was pinned by...an extended baton? A metal staff? He couldn’t tell.

Bright, glowing green eyes gazed down at him, the sclera also green. Her irises were even slits. He had no idea how it was possible for a human to have these characteristics, but he needed to focus on the fact that he was being pinned down by a POI on their case.

“Sorry to drop in on you, Agreste,” she said, her tone a bit soft and playful. “But I couldn’t help overhearing that tidbit about the victims from earlier. I was hoping to check and see if the Butterfly was in the area.”

“Why would letting me wander around a bit lure him out?” Adrien asked her, a bit breathless from being smacked down into cobblestone so abruptly. “Also...who are you?”

“Can’t say,” she answered simply, releasing him from her bond and letting him sit up, though her staff kept him in place. Taking her appearance in properly for the first time, he paused a bit.

She was definitely short, he had that pegged correctly. She spoke with a slight accent, but Adrien couldn’t place it. Her voice was clear and soft, not the imposing and snarky voice he had pictured her having. Lady Noire was dressed in all black, green accents lining her jacket and...was that a leather jumpsuit?

Adrien flushed a little when he realized just how snug it fit on her.

He also noticed her hair twitching...almost like a cat’s tail? It was certainly longer than floor length, but it warped and bent, and even twitched like a cat’s tail. Like she was anticipating her food/entertainment to attempt to get away. He also noticed that she was masked, and had...cat ears? On her head?

What especially caught his attention was the ring on her right hand. Pitch black with a glowing green paw print on it.

“Agreste?”

“Sorry, a-admiring the view,” he said, which earned him a gentle bonk on the head from her staff. “Why do you think the Butterfly would be after me?”

“Oh, he definitely is, or might be after someone like you. With money, power,” she said, her tail...hair twitching as she thought for a moment. “But why the Bazin family? What did they have that the Butterfly would be interested in?”

“Affluence?” Adrien tried.

“Perhaps,” she agreed. “Maybe going after the affluent families would terrify their eventual victims into giving them what they want. What better way than to go after the elite?”

“But why the Bazins?”

“The patriarch, Adam Bazin, isn’t he a film critic? Or...was a film critic?”

Lady Noire fully retracted her staff.

“Your mother was an actress, wasn’t she?”

“Yes, she was, but she mostly did theatre acting,” he said. “She only starred in one film, and it had limited distribution and showings. My family has the only copies of the film.”

“I see,” Lady Noire pondered, before looking beside herself. “Watch your back, Agreste. There’s no telling what the Butterfly will do next at this rate.”

With that, she slinked away in the blink of an eye, leaving Adrien alone in the alley again. He wasted no time making his way back to the crime scene, and groaned slightly when he noticed the forensics team lining things up for the photographers.

Su much for gathering more evidence. He would have to try his best with the leads he had, and he felt around in his pocket for the business card while he made his way back to his car.

Perhaps the journalist could help him after all.


	2. The Lounge Singer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taking Alya up on her offer, Adrien agrees to meet with her at a location of her choosing: Ladybug Lounge.

Alya’s idea of a discreet meeting place was a joke, Adrien had decided.

It has to be a joke. A tiny little lounge on the outskirts of the 20th arrondissement that was bustling with people looking for a cheap drink. The cheesy black and red entrance doors resembled that of a ladybug’s spots, and the whole lounge seemed to be themed around ladybugs. The Ladybug Lounge.

“Are you sure this is the place? I feel like I’m going to get mugged,” Adrien complained slightly as Alya pulled him to a table near the stage. She straightened up a little bit as she sat down, pulling a large file and a larger notebook out of her satchel and looking him in the eye with a deadpan expression.  
“My fiance is the manager, might wanna pipe down,” she said. “And a friend of mine sings here three nights a week, I like to drop by and watch from time to time.”

Adrien merely raised a brow. He didn’t inquire further at the moment, waiting for Alya to take the lead as he studied her behavior.

“Anyway, I don’t think I properly caught your name?” Alya began, opening her notebook and scribbling in it a bit.

“Detective Adrien Agreste.”

She paused, looking up at him.

“Agreste? Like the designer brand Agreste?”

“That would be my father,” he clarified, leaning back in his chair and giving her his full attention. “We don’t particularly get along, so I’d rather not discuss him unless it’s relevant to the investigation.”

“Well, knowing that now, it could potentially be relevant,” Alya continued, shaking her head as she continued writing. “The police confirmed that the victims were the Bazin family, affluent film critics. They have a past with your father.”

“I already called and informed him of what happened,” Adrien said, sighing a bit. Gabriel had been unhappy to receive a call from Adrien until he broke the news, and Adrien had been immediately hung up on after a few seconds of silence. He signaled for a waiter to come, ordering a drink as Alya continued.

“How did he respond to the news?”

“Not well,” Adrien said. “Want a drink?”

“I’m good, Adrien,” Alya said, her tone a bit flat. “I don’t drink. Anyway, that would bring The Butterfly’s kill count to 16 people now.”

“Correct,” Adrien confirmed. “I have yet to hear about why you need to know all of this.”

“Let’s just say I have a personal investment in this,” she answered. “My friend’s parents were murdered by The Butterfly, the bakery case.”

That’s right, Adrien thought back to the incident 7 months ago. They had received a call from a distraught young woman, having found her parents murdered in their own bakery. All the classic hallmarks had been present to link them to the other killings, though Adrien still wasn’t sure what they had to do with the Bazins.

“That was right before the killer started going for more high profile targets, we think now that he was practicing his multi-victim techniques,” He said. “There was a significant struggle, lots of the displays had either been knocked over or destroyed.”

Alya wrote all of that down, sighing.

“Did you happen to meet their daughter? My friend?”

“Not at the time, no. I only got to listen to a couple of witness statements she had provided.” Adrien sighed. He knew from losing his mother how gut-wrenching it was, but the baker's daughter had lost both of hers in a horrific way. “How is she holding up?”

“She had to sell the old bakery and move,” Alya answered, looking tired even discussing it. “I guess she could be worse off, Nino offered her part-time work here so she could stabilize her income.”

“Nino?”

“My fiance,” she clarified, smiling a bit at the mention of him. “He actually knew Marinette long before I did, but they didn’t become better friends until she became my best friend. As soon as he heard about what happened, he wanted to help. So...he gave her a job.”

Adrien couldn’t help a small smile at that.

“Nino sounds lovely, but we need to get back on topic,” he urged gently, Alya clearing her throat and nodding as he chuckled.

“Right. So, the main reason I wanted to talk to you was Lady Noire.”

“Lady Noire,” Adrien repeated. He had an inkling that she would be brought up again. His encounter with her still had him a bit flustered, and the mention of her made his cheeks turn a bit pink.

“She started showing up not long after the bakery murders,” Alya continued, scribbling some more as she flipped the file open. Inside was a very, very blurry photo of a vague humanoid shape with a stick. “This is the best photo of her that the press has, but I know she works a bit more...intimately with the police. Can you confirm?”

“She actually intercepted me today,” Adrien answered, Alya’s eyes widening a bit.

“Wait, really?! What was she like? Is she strong? Does she have magical powers or is she just super athletic-”

Adrien cut her off with a raised hand.

“Slow down, I’ll tell you what I can.”

Alya sat back down, clearing her throat again as she readied her pen.

“Right. Lady Noire is a short young woman, very long black hair tied in a braid. She had leather cat ears and a leather jumpsuit on, and a leather jacket. She also carried an adjustable metal staff, everything with green accents. And she wears a mask.”

“Any other defining features, Adrien?”

“Green eyes,” he noted, as she scribbled it down. “And a distinctive ring on her right hand, over her gloves. Black, with a green paw print on it. I swear the thing was glowing…”

“Fascinating,” she said quietly, writing that down. “Do you think you could narrow her appearance down a little more? I know men aren’t the most descriptive.”

Adrien looked a bit grumpy at that, thinking back for a moment.

“Black earrings, I guess? They kind of match her whole outfit. She had a very slight accent, but I couldn’t place it.”

“An accent, interesting. How was her French?” She teased, winking.

“Flawless, she speaks like a native,” He answered. “Perhaps a parent was an immigrant? Both parents?”

“A possibility,” she agreed, jotting that down just as the lights started to dim. Alya looked up at Adrien, smiling a bit.

“Showtime,” she said, just as Adrien’s drink was delivered. He sighed, turning his attention to the stage as the jazz band started up.

A young woman in red stepped onto the stage, glittering sequins catching the light enough to highlight her figure as she walked up to the microphone. Adrien recognized her from the bakery incident, but this person was far from the blubbering young 20-something he had seen prior.

She had her long, black hair swept up gracefully behind her shoulders, loose waves pinned up artfully to the back of her head. Shimmering, bluebell eyes scanned the crows as she began her song, her voice even and sweet as they played on. Alya was smiling and cheering along with the rest of the crowd, hyping the young woman up as Adrien nursed his drink.

She was good, he had to give her that. And pretty. No wonder Nino had hired her on.

The song ended, and a short interlude instrumental played as she left the stage for a quick break. Adrien turned his attention back to Alya, who was smirking a bit at him.

“So, what do you think?”

“Very nice performance,” he confirmed with a slight grin, taking another swig. “Now that we’ve had a break, can you tell me why you’re so invested in Lady Noire?”

“Again, she showed up not long after the bakery deaths,” Alya clarified. “I’m guessing she was only watching from the shadows at that point, but those murders in particular seemed to motivate her to come out of hiding and aid the police. But I’m wondering where she gets her intel from? And why does she keep eluding you guys so much?”

“Fair question, ones we’ve wondered ourselves,” Adrien answered. “Miss Noire wasn’t very forthcoming when we talked earlier, but it was better than nothing. I think we both deduced that the Butterfly was going after affluent families now to scare other affluent families.”

“Like the Agrestes?”

“Potentially, though that would just be me and my father now,” Adrien said. “My father doesn’t have any other family on his side, and my mother’s side of the family lives in London. Wouldn’t be much point to killing a fashion designer.”

“Not much point in killing film critics either,” Alya pointed out. “Maybe it’s a specific type of affluent family they’re trying to scare. “Big names, new money.”

Adrien pondered that for a bit. Alya did have a point. The Bazins were new money, only recently gaining their wealth after films had taken off.

“Alya?” A new voice called, feminine and gentle, Adrien looked up to see the lounge speaker approaching, and she seemed to be a bit more reserved than her stage presence let on. Alya stood, hugging her friend.

“Good to see you, girl,” she said warmly, smiling. “Thought I’d drop by and come check on you, how are you?”

“I’ve been alright,” Marinette continued. “Who’s your friend?”

“Adrien,” he piped up, standing and offering her his hand. She took it after a second of hesitance, shaking it with a surprisingly sturdy grip. Adrien thought that was a bit odd for someone as small as Marinette. “I’m working on a case associated with the bakery, Alya and I were just comparing notes.”

“Oh,” Marinette mumbled slightly, her gaze flicking downward a bit. “I...I’m not used to talking about it, but if you need anything…”

“That’s not necessary right now, don’t worry,” Adrien reassured her, flashing a model-like smile at her. “Just focus on work.”

“Right,” she said, managing a weak smile, before it faded a bit. Her gaze just seemed so sad and forlorn to Adrien, an inescapable sadness that he was all too familiar with at this point. “I hope you find whoever did it…”

“Thanks, I’ll try my best,” Adrien said reassuringly, flashing a warmer smile at her this time, which she returned. Marinette made her way back to the stage, beginning another song.

\---

It turned out Alya was a treasure trove of information that Adrien had never known could exist. The journalist was observant, persistent, and devoted to her work. What would normally scare the absolute crap out of him, but was useful to the case.

They managed to link all the murders of affluent victims to some form of entertainment, even if the connections were vague, and Adrien was starting to notice a pattern.

All of them were loosely or tightly associated with Gabriel Agreste.

Adrien was torn. He didn’t want to tell his father about everything that was going on case-wise, but there was a good chance that the killer could be after him next. Or Adrien, since he was a bit simpler to get to.

When he arrived home, he made his way over to the living room, undoing his tie and kicking off his shoes as he finally sat down. He picked up the phone, dialing a number he hated.

“Hello?” an impatient, slightly irritated voice answered. Gabriel seemed irritated to have his time interrupted again.

“Father,” Adrien said quietly. “We need to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all are enjoying so far! Updates are going to be pretty inconsistent.


	3. Ill Met By The Mansion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien confronts his father for the first time in forever, in an attempt to keep him safe. He also receives an unlikely visitor at the police station, and everything seems to be pointing to the Agreste mansion...

Gabriel, of course, was less than pleased with the news.

It was the next morning at this point, and Adrien was waiting for the full autopsy report. It was always the same, but he still needed to file the paperwork associated with the murders. Instead of fussing over the dead, he flipped through all the photographs that were taken yesterday.

They were the typical lineup shots, taking pictures of footprints left behind. The brick and mortar with the Butterfly’s macabre masterpiece on it looked nearly black in the photo. Adrien only wished there was an easy way to get photos in color at this point, but he had been at the scene. He knew what details were important and what wasn’t important. He flipped through the photos of their belongings, wondering what the entire family was even doing on a night out like this.

Just then, Adrien’s boss walked up to him.

“Agreste, your father and his assistant are here. I took the liberty of getting them settled into an interrogation room, with the lights on of course.”

“Thanks,” Adrien said dryly, his face souring a bit. His boss looked on with concern.

“Don’t get along with your old man?”

“Not anymore, call it a creative difference,” Adrien said dismissively. “Still...he is my father. I need to figure this out.”

He simply nodded at Adrien, moving to head back to his office as Adrien went to go confront his father,

Gabriel Agreste was an imposing man, even sitting down. His towering height and permanent scowl were the complete opposite of what Adrien considered a proper fashion designer to look like. Regardless, Gabriel’s cold, grey eyes were immediately trained on Adrien as he sat down across from his father.

“Hello, Nathalie,” Adrien greeted the assistant pleasantly, and she returned the gesture with a slight nod and a small smile as she sat at attention. “Can I get you or father anything to drink?”

“That’s not necessary, but thank you,” Nathalie responded, moving to glance down at a clipboard that tucked neatly into her arm. Adrien cleared his throat.

“Father, I assume you know why you’re here.”

“Yes, I’m well aware,” Gabriel simply said, his tone slightly irritated. Adrien knew that his father felt like he was having his time wasted. “I still don’t understand why I’m relevant to all of this.”

“Each and every victim with a hint of affluence or wealth has ties to our family,” Adrien said simply, and Gabriel stiffened a bit. “The Bazins especially, they were pretty close with you and mom for a while there.”

“Yes,” Gabriel said carefully, his breath catching slightly as he cleared his throat. “We were close for a long time, they adored your mother.”

A heavy silence filled the room at the mention of Adrien’s mother.

Emilie Agreste was a beautiful, if tragic person. She had died about ten years ago, and Adrien would be lying if he claimed that he didn’t miss her anymore. He missed listening to his father quietly serenade her at night with his grand piano, making her giggle softly as he gazed at her with a romantic longing that even Adrien could pick up on.

Her death had been a major blow to the family. It started with dizzy spells, and quickly progressed to memory and motor function loss as time went on. Doctors were baffled by her sudden deterioration, and one day, Adrien had found her…

He shook his head slightly, pushing the painful memory down so he could focus on his father, and he had a job to do.

“I think you might be in danger, father,” he said quietly. Gabriel’s scowled softened into an unreadable expression, and he sagged a little bit in his chair.

“Adrien...you’re worried about me? Even after…?”

“We’re still family, father,” Adrien quipped slightly. “Even if we...disagreed on my career choices. You’re still my father and...I don’t want anything happening to you.”

“I don’t want anything happening to you either,” Gabriel said, with the all too familiar tone that Adrien recognized immediately. He knew what Gabriel was about to say next. “Maybe you should resign, come back home-”

“Not happening,” Adrien said firmly. “I’m an adult now, father. I need to be able to take care of myself. You’re not going to always be around.”

Gabriel seemed like he was about to protest until Adrien said that, and his words died on his lips as silence filled the room. Finally, Gabriel spoke up again.

“Are you sure you can take care of yourself?”

“No, but I’m just going to have to figure that out,” Adrien answered with a weak smile. “I do have a couple leads I’m following right now, but those leads are also telling me that you’re no longer safe.”

“Right,” Gabriel said, his voice softening a bit more. He readjusted his striped tie, looking uncomfortable. “What are your plans in the meantime?”

“Increased patrols at and near your mansion,” Adrien said immediately. “You’re not the only one getting this treatment, but…”

“I understand,” Gabriel said, and Adrien’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. His father? Agreeable? Even Nathalie seemed a bit surprised. They wrapped up the conversation then, Adrien and his father sharing a very tense handshake before the designer and his assistant left. Adrien made his way back to his desk, only to find someone waiting for him right next to it.

The lounge singer from last night. She was trembling like a nervous animal, but her bright blue eyes lit up when she noticed him approaching.

“Oh, A-Adrien, sorry to drop in all of a sudden,” she stammered, and now that they were in better lighting, Adrien could really take her in properly.

She was still wearing what looked like a really, really expensive dress, just less flashy than the one from the night before. It was a red and black silk garment with a black jacket resting on her shoulders, and what looked like a handmade glass pendant dangled from her neck. She had very delicate and pretty features, and they were a bit...foreign to him. Adrien deduced that she was probably half east-asian, and he secretly wondered if she was Japanese-

He rubbed his face, trying to focus on the timid girl.

“You’re fine, Marinette,” he reassured her. “Why are you here though? I figured this would be the last place you wanted to be.”

A light blush crept up her cheeks, and Adrien figured she was a bit flustered at the observation. She fiddled with something between her hands.

“I uh...I have...a note. From Lady Noire.”

That caught his attention.

“Wait, a note? From Lady Noire?”

Marinette looked even more flustered now, shoving the note into his hand.

“Yeah, uh, she told me to give this to you,” she said. “Scared me to death when she came up to me last night, but she said it was important. And that I shouldn’t read it.”

Marinette’s gaze darted toward the ground, as she seemed to be trying to catch her breath. Adrien caught a glance at something twinkling from her ears, a set of black earrings that matched her outfit.

“You sing at the lounge part time, right?” He asked, managing to usher her into the chair across from his desk. When he let go of her hand, he noticed yet another shiny thing. A chunky, rose gold ring that nested comfortably on her right ring finger. He wondered where she was getting all this money from.

“Y-yeah, I do,” she said. “I’m also a seamstress, but that’s also part time. It was fine when I was living at home, but...I needed something else.”

“You have pretty expensive taste for being tight on money,” he commented, sitting across from her. His own green eyes studied her carefully, trying to pick the girl apart. Marinette cleared her throat.

“I make most of my own clothes,” she said, a hint of personal pride peeking through. Adrien smiled at that, perhaps the girl was a bit more confident when she talked about something more in her element. “Even the dress from last night, that was all me.”

Adrien noticed a slight lisp in her vowels when she spoke. It was rather adorable.

“Pretty impressive,” he said, smiling slightly. “Maybe I should introduce you to my father sometime.”

“Your father?” Marinette’s brows knit together slightly. “Is he a clothing maker? A shop owner?”

“A bit of both,” he answered, and Marinette managed to get a glimpse of the desk name tag, stiffening.

“W...wait, you’re Adrien Agreste?” she squeaked nervously, and he chuckled.

“Don’t worry about it, Marinette. I’m not my father,” he reassured her, which did little to help her relax, but that wasn’t something he could control. “I’m sure he would like your dresses too, they’re quite nice.”

“T-thank you,” she stuttered, bowing her head awkwardly and almost hitting her forehead on the desk, which Adrien prevented by pushing his hand to stop the impact from happening. The girl was a mess, and Adrien was eating it up.

“Careful now, last thing we need is a cut on that pretty face of yours,” he teased her, and she returned to full blown blustered stuttering as he chuckled, reading the note.

_Meet me at the Agreste mansion, 2300. We need to have a chat._

“So Lady Noire wants to meet up with me,” he mused. At night. That was a huge risk, and it only raised more questions. Marinette managed to calm down enough to focus on him.

“Is that s-something you’re considering?” she asked, tucking a lock of black hair behind her ear.

“Might be too dangerous to go by myself. Maybe you could join me, my lady?”

Marinette looked like she was about to melt into a puddle at the suggestion.

“M-maybe Alya will go,” she sputtered out, hiding her face from him. Adrien paused at the suggestion.

“That’s...actually not a bad idea, thanks Marinette,” he said, getting a notepad out. “Is it okay if I get your phone number? In case we need to get in contact again, or if you want me to tease you some more~?”

Marinette actually scowled at him, and he laughed slightly, his hands raising up in defeat as he relented. She told him her number and current address, and he wrote her name down, frowning slightly.

“Don’t know your last name, sorry,” he said.

“Dupain-Cheng,” she said simply, smiling softly. Adrien nodded, writing it down. So she was half-Chinese. He thinks. He doesn’t know, but the name is a good indicator.

“Thanks, I’ll be in touch,” he told her, and she bade him a quick farewell as she ducked out of the police station. Adrien packed up to leave work early, he knew he needed to get a nap in before his late night escapade tonight.

Before that though, he gave Alya a call.

\---

“Okay, pretty boy, I’m here. You’re here. We’d better see Lady Noire tonight, or you owe me.”

Alya yawned as Adrien leaned casually against his car, which sat in the pristine driveway of the Agreste mansion. He was deliberately trying to avoid gazing at his old home for too long, instead directing his attention at Alya.

“I got a note from her, hand-delivered by Marinette. You trust Marinette, right?”

“Oh, definitely. She isn’t someone who can bring herself to lie,” Alya answered, smiling brightly at the mention of her friend. “Though I did hear about you teasing her.”

“I couldn’t help it, she was so cute,” he joked, chuckling as Alya shook his head at him, before staring directly behind him, on the roof of his car.

“Agreste, you were supposed to come by yourself,” a familiar voice chided, and he spun around quickly.

Lady Noire rested carefully on the roof of his car, looking at him with a playful grin on her face. Alya was speechless, staring at their new guest with a mixture of awe and apprehension. She hopped off of the car nimbly, stalking closer to him silently.

“No matter, I’m sure you figured out by now that the murders-”

“Are tied to my father somehow, yeah, I picked that up pretty quickly,” he said, nodding. Lady Noire smirked.

“Clever,” she said, starting to pace. She seemed to be fiddling with her staff, Adrien coming to the conclusion that she needed her hands to be busy to stay focused. It was something he could relate to, though he usually flicked a pen or bounced his leg. She was twirling her staff casually between her hands.

“Miss Noire, I have some questions for you, if I may,” Alya pressed, though she was completely ignored by their black-clad guest for the time being. She eventually turned to look at Adrien.

“How much did you tell your father?” she asked.

“Everything we were aware of, aside from the grizzly details,” he answered. Lady Noire didn’t seem happy with that answer, her hair bristling slightly.

“Adrien,” she scolded, using his name for the first time. “That was probably the worst thing you could have done.”

“E-excuse me?”

Alya blinked too, starting to jot down everything she was hearing. Lady Noire didn’t seem to pay her any mind.

“You heard me,” she snapped, her accent leaking through a bit more, though adrien couldn’t place it still. “Did you ever consider the fact that your father could potentially be a suspect?”

“I...what?”

“Wait, Lady Noire,” Alya interrupted, this time getting her attention. “Are you saying that Gabriel was the reason these people all died?”

“No, I don’t have the evidence,” Lady Noire said. “However, it’s an avenue that needs to be explored. No matter how ridiculous it sounds.”

“I don’t think so, my father was quite concerned about my safety when I talked to him this morning,” Adrien said, rubbing the back of his head. “If he didn’t want me to be alive and well, he wouldn’t have said anything...right?”

“Fair point,” Lady Noire said, leaping up on the fence and resting casually on it with the balance and grace of a cat.

“Miss,” Alya pressed again. “What drove you to do this, where does all your information come from? Do you mind if I do an interview?”

Lady Noire looked unimpressed, sighing with a bit of exasperation.

“You had to pick a reporter to bring along with you,” she muttered, Adrien chuckling awkwardly. She turned to face Alya. “Fine, I’ll answer what I can. Try not to publish too many details, that could put me at risk.”

“Oh no, none of this is going into print,” Alya reassured her, making Lady Noire look at her with a raised...brow? It was hard for Adrien to tell behind the mask. Alya stood at the ready, her pen shaking slightly in anticipation.

“What drove you to come out and help the police?”

“Personal loss,” Lady Noire answered simply. “The Butterfly killed people that were very dear to me. I want to help stop him.”

Alya wrote excitedly, not paying attention to just how uncomfortable Lady Noire had become in just a few seconds.

“How do your abilities work? Do you just train really hard?”

“It’s a mixture of training, magic, and a bit of bad luck,” Lady Noire answered.

“Bad luck?”

“I was approached in the lowest moment of my life, I owe the one that saved me my life,” Lady Noire said quietly.

Alya paused, looking up as the information she had shared just hit her.

“O-oh, I’m...I’m so sorry, you probably think I’m so insensitive-”

Lady Noire held a hand up, silencing Alya as she seemed to listen intently. A twig cracked in the far distance, but she was on high alert.

“Hold the interview, we have company.”


	4. Interrogations, And Finally, Answers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chance encounter finally leads Adrien to the information he's looking for, but not in the way he was expecting. He is also granted an important gift, one he will need to take extra good care of.

Adrien was immediately on high alert, Alya falling silent as he listened and strained. Lady Noire’s gaze was locked on the street corner nearby, her leather ears twitching slightly in anticipation. Were it any other situation, Adrien would’ve been more focused on that. But for the time being, he was more focused on a potential attacker.

Eventually, Lady Noire became less tense.

“They’re still there,” she breathed, lowering herself silently back to ground level and extending her staff. Alya seemed even more tense, but she was oddly collected and calm as she also stared intently in the same direction.

Adrien couldn’t take it anymore. He started making his way over to the street corner, rounding it widely to avoid getting ambushed by the fenceline. Turning the corner, there was no one there.

A loud _CLANG_ sounded over his head, and he found himself being swept off his feet for the second time that week. Though this time, Lady Noire stood over him with a protective stance, her staff extended and fending off a barrage of attacks from his assailant. Adrien could only lay still and avoid getting in her way, as she grunted and eventually smacked the assailant hard enough in the head to stagger them. With that, Adrien could finally get a clear look at their face.

Or so he had hoped. The man was wearing a mask that concealed most of his face, save for below his eyes and nose. He was clad in a tight purple jumpsuit, a distinctive brooch with four translucent wings poking out of it pinned up close to his neck. The mask itself also had a butterfly imprint outlining and framing his concealed face, and his hands.

He was holding a metal cane.

“YOU-”

Adrien didn’t even get the chance to continue talking, Lady Noire lunged at the man with vicious accuracy, the hardened glare on her face having turned into a wild and frenzied expression. She began screaming at The Butterfly Killer in a language Adrien had least expected, Chinese.

The expletives that exploded for her as she viciously attacked the masked killer impressed him. Alya was frozen near the car still, staring at the scene with a mixture of awe and fear as she watched the fight go on. Adrien could only watch in bewilderment as she called him everything from a scumbag to a monster. Very well deserved, but it was the very last thing he had expected to come from someone he had considered to be a calm and collected individual.

It took the killer a second to get his bearings while avoiding several whacks from Lady Noire’s staff, starting to fight back as he gritted his teeth. Adrien also noticed that he was covered in blood, and his blood ran cold.

He had just killed again, he could feel it.

“YOU WILL PAY FOR EVERYTHING YOU’VE DONE,” Lady Noire screeched in Chinese, as she lunged again, going for his neck. The man grunted as the force of her ferocity knocked him on the ground, trying to keep the brooch on his neck away from her as she clawed at him.

“YOU DON’T DESERVE TO BEAR A MIRACULOUS!”

Miraculous? The word didn’t seem to fit. He wasn’t entirely sure he understood exactly, but he had no time to worry about it, as the killer had managed to knock her off of him as he got up and bolted away from them, faster than anyone could reasonably run. Before Lady Noire could run after him, Adrien held a hand up.

“Wait-” he called, and thankfully managed to catch her attention. He paused, hesitating for a second. She was crying, sobbing uncontrollably and gripping the staff with a death grip at that point. Sirens blared in the distance as he ran to her, and she collapsed to her knees as a few patrol cars arrived. Adrien realized that there were a few neighbors who had heard everything and contacted the police.

“Hey, hey...you’re okay, we’re fine,” he tried reassuring her as the lights became visible, and the mansion was soon surrounded. The Agreste mansion’s lights were flipping on one-by-one, and eventually the illuminated figure of his father made its way out to the front gate. Adrien didn’t care much about that at that point, trying to make sure the one person that could give them more information remained with them.

He needed to figure out what she had meant by miraculous.

\---

Adrien was leaning against the door of the interrogation room, Lady Noire inside. She had not spoken a single word on the entire ride to the station, and neither had Alya. He was giving her space to calm down a bit, as he glanced back inside through the one-way mirror.

She was still shuddering and sobbing slightly, but was much calmer than she was back at the Agreste mansion. The lighting in the building revealed yet even more about her appearance, down to tiny details he had not noticed before. Now was not the time to confront her though, not yet.

Alya eventually walked up to Adrien, having been thoroughly questioned minutes before, like Adrien.

“How is she?”

“Calmer,” he said quietly, shifting his weight and making the door creak. Lady Noire’s head immediately shot toward the door, her cat-like pupils narrow slits as she tensed.

“Sorry, just me,” he called in reassuringly, and thankfully she relaxed back in her chair as he turned his attention back to Alya.

“What was she screaming at him?” Alya asked. “I had no idea what she was saying.”

“She was using very, very colorful Chinese,” Adrien said, chuckling slightly at the thought. Alya perked up.

“Wait, you could understand her?”

“Father forced me to learn growing up. I never thought it would actually be useful or relevant to me,” he said, shrugging. “Whatever kind of grudge she has against him, it’s a harsh one.”

Alya shivered.

“I...I think he was covered in blood, Adrien,” she said quietly. “He just hurt someone else…”

“I saw,” Adrien confirmed weakly. “I asked everyone to be on the lookout. My father is fine at least…”

“I’m glad,” she said softly. “I called Nino, he’s coming to pick me up and take me home. Will you be...okay?”

“I’ll be fine,” he said, his tone warming a bit. “I’ll keep an eye on her. I don’t think my boss wants her going anywhere anytime soon either, she has valuable information.”

“I can hear you,” Lady Noire said from inside the room, the tip of her braid twitching in annoyance. Adrien sighed, moving and opening the door wide open as he leaned against it.

“I think we deserve some straight answers,” he said bluntly. “Whatever he did, I want to help you obtain justice for it. But we can’t do that unless you decide to talk to us.”

She gave him a rather bone-chilling stare, her pupils still slits as she scowled harshly at him. Eventually, as the minutes passed, her expression softened.

“I almost had him…” Lady Noire said, her voice weak and tiny, faint even. It sounded...oddly familiar to him. Her bravado was gone, and in her place was a scared young woman who just wanted answers too.

“We can get him, just help us,” he urged, entering and sitting at the desk. “Please…”

“I...I can’t give you too much,” she said, her words guarded and chosen carefully. She was staring right at him, eyes wide. “I...I can try to give you what I can.”

“You can start by telling me what a Miraculous is,” he said bluntly, and she tensed again. Dammit.

“Where did you hear about Miraculous?” she asked him defensively, crossing her arms. He caught another glimpse of the ring, pitch black with the green paw print. He reached out, taking that hand and gently pulling it toward him.

“Is...this a Miraculous? The killer had on a distinctive brooch, you went for it. What would happen if-”

“Don’t. Touch the ring,” Lady Noire warned, her expression turning deadly.

Adrien paused, looking at her.

“The ring, the brooch, that’s what you meant. Miraculous is...jewelry?”

“What happens if you take the ring off?” Alya asked, still near the doorway. Her grey eyes were transfixed on Lady Noire.

“If I took this off, the two of you would see my true identity,” Lady Noire said simply. “That would put the two of you in danger, I...I can’t risk that. Especially not after tonight. He went after you, Adrien.

She was right. The Butterfly Killer had gone after him. He would be a beaten pulp if it weren’t for her help.

“I...I owe you one, for saving me,” he said quietly, and the tension in her face melted away slightly as she relaxed.

“I couldn’t let him take another person,” she said quietly. “Especially one who is so precious to so many.”

Alya came in, sitting on the table.

“Girl, you’re more sappy than I was expecting you to be,” she teased, Lady Noire chuckling slightly.

“You should see me without the mask,” she remarked, before clearing her throat. She turned back to Adrien.

“So...what do we need to do?” He asked.

“You need to locate his latest victims,” Lady Noire answered. “I could smell the fresh blood on him. Go from there. The ultimate goal is to get the brooch away from him, that’s what grants him his power.”

“And the ring grants you yours,” he stated, getting a curt nod of confirmation.

“The Miraculous grants their users superhuman strength, agility, and speed,” she explained. “They also grant their users unique weapons, ones that cannot be broken and are magically reinforced. It’s different for each Miraculous. The butterfly is a particularly powerful one, it can influence the emotions of others and makes the user more keenly aware of someone’s emotions.”

“That’s incredible,” Alya breathed.

“He hasn’t even discovered what makes his Miraculous so powerful,” Lady Noire continued. “He has the ability to turn any ally into a dangerous superhuman, with the same miraculous enhancement and unique powers tied to the individual. Once he figures that out, this is only going to get worse…”

Adrien stared, panting slightly. 

“Wait, how is all of this even happening?” He asked.

“Magic,” she answered simply. “Each Miraculous is bound to a small, interdimensional creature. The power granted from the Miraculous originates from the creature.”

“So you have one too?” Adrien asked.

“I have two, technically,” Lady Noire answered. “I keep one on me as a backup in case I lose my ring.”

“And what does the ring do?”

“It...grants me the ability to destroy anything I touch,” she said quietly. Adrien paused, shuddering slightly at the idea of watching someone disintegrate before his very eyes.

“That’s a big responsibility, a dangerous one,” Adrien said carefully, and she nodded in agreement.

“You need to have very good restraint to successfully wield this Miraculous,” she said, holding it up so it was eye level with Adrien. “This is exactly the kind of Miraculous that should not be given out lightly.”

“You could’ve killed him pretty easily then. Why didn’t you?”

“Killing him wouldn’t bring back my loved ones, or the other victims who died,” she answered simply. “I want him to feel the utter terror and fear of being exposed for the monster he is, and I want to see swift justice dealt. I want him to face and answer for his crimes. Killing him won’t accomplish that.”

A voice cleared in the doorway, the three of them turning to face who was there.

It was a young man, with deeper skin and dark hair shaved close to his scalp. He wore thick glasses, and seemed to be sturdy and well built. Alya seemed relieved, getting up and nearly bowling into him with a hug.

Nino, Adrien deduced, cleared his throat as he hugged Alya close.

“I don’t think I was supposed to hear any of that,” he said quietly. “I’ll just be taking Alya home. If you guys need to talk to her, find us at the lounge.”

Adrien nodded, the two of them leaving as he turned his attention to Lady Noire.

She was holding her fist out at him, clearly trying to hand him something in her palm. He held his hand out, and what was in her palm slipped into his.

It was her earrings, or they had been. Mid-air, they shifted to a bright cherry red with black spots, before turning white once they landed in his palm. His eyebrows shot up immediately.

“Hawkmoth is after you too,” she said weakly. “I might not always be around to fend you off like before, you’re going to need to be able to fend for yourself.”

“Wait, what are these?”

“Miraculous,” she answered quietly. “Powerful ones. Keep them close, I’m trusting you with them. Okay, Adrien?”


	5. From Bad To Worse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Accepting his new responsibility, Adrien has to juggle his knew knowledge and Hawkmoth's latest victim.

Adrien stared at the small studs currently resting in his hand. They seemed unremarkable, despite shifting colors right before his very eyes.

“Should I just…?”

“Put them on, yes,” she said, before pausing. “Unless your ears aren’t pierced, I wasn’t taking that into cons-”

“Actually, they are,” he interrupted, going to put them on, before she stopped him slightly.

“Close the door first.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see,” she answered quietly, and he sighed, getting up to go close the door to the interrogation room. He drew the blinds that hung from the inside, so they couldn’t be spied on.

“Okay, now put them on?”

Lady Noire simply nodded, Adrien taking a deep breath and putting the studs on. A warmth enveloped him, pink flashes briefly filling his vision before they erupted into a small creature.

It was easily one of the most adorable things he had ever seen. Roughly the size of a mouse, the creature looked at him with big, deep blue eyes. She was bright red, a few black spots dotting her face and back as she smiled brightly at him.

“Uh...this is what you meant by small, interdimensional creatures, right?” He asked Lady Noire, who only smiled weakly.

“This is Tikki,” she said. “She can grant you the power of creation, and most of her magic centers around luck, and thinking outside of the box.”

“Pleased to meet you,” the tiny creature said politely, Adrien unable to help it as he smiled back and held out his hands for her to rest in.

“Good to meet you too,” he said. “I’m Adrien.”

“I know, I’ve been listening and hiding the entire time,” she explained, Adrien chuckling a little bit as his attention turned to Lady Noire once more.

“You have a little friend like this too?”

“Yes,” she answered. “He can be difficult for some people to get along with, but he does fine with me. Tikki’s powers are a bit more difficult to get a grasp of, but she’s easier for most to get along with.”

“I see,” he said, still unsure of what to make of it. Here he was, just being handed indescribable power from someone he still didn’t know all that well. “So does this mean I get to know your identity?”

“For the time being, no. Too risky,” she said, sighing as she leaned back in her chair. “If you want to transform, all you need to do is say ‘Spots on.’ That triggers your transformation and grants you the Miraculous powers.”

“If I want to get rid of it?”

“Say ‘Spots off,’” She answered. “If Hawkmoth figures out how to work his miraculous properly, we will be needing Tikki’s help.”

“Why is that?” Adrien asked.

“The way Hawkmoth gains allies is by creating akumas,” Tikki answered, speaking up. “He will do so by corrupting a butterfly, which will warp and merge with an object associated with his chosen ally. The only way to get rid of it permanently is purifying the akuma he would create.”

“Which is something only you can do, since you have the Miraculous,” Lady Noire said. “Right now, in your ears, those are the only ones that can purify an akuma. This is important for you to remember, okay?”

He nodded, gulping slightly as he sat down.

“This is a lot,” he said quietly, Lady Noire sighing.

“I know, I’m sorry,” she said weakly. “Right now though, you’re the one looking into this. You’re making yourself a target, and this is the only solution I can currently think of.”

“How did...this Hawkmoth character even get his brooch?” Adrien asked, Lady Noire sighing.

“He stole it from the Guardian,” she explained. “The Guardian guards a set of Miraculous, and distributes them as needed.”

“Murder, theft, guess he could also be tried for tax evasion,” Adrien joked, actually earning a weak chuckle from her. Progress.

“I have a feeling he has many unspoken crimes he needs to answer for,” she said quietly, sitting up a bit straighter. Tikki zipped around in the air for a second, before landing on his shoulder. Adrien actually found himself appreciating her company already, reaching up to pat the creature on her head.

“So Tikki, what are you exactly?”

“I’m a Kwami!” She answered enthusiastically. Adrien smiled a bit.

“Anything I should know about Kwami care?”

“Be nice to her,” Lady Noire said. “She’s a friend, not a servant. Treat her with respect, and you two should be fine. She will also need to recharge every now and then, especially if you use either of her powers. She really, really likes sweets.”

“Sweets, got it,” Adrien said, nodding. Tikki decided to zip around the room some more, taking the momentary chance to explore and entertain herself. “You explained the purifying thing, that’s one power. What’s the other?”

“It’s called the Miraculous Cure,” she answered. “It rights wrongs, fixes damage, reverses mistakes, anything that goes wrong after you initially transform. It can also heal wounds and break curses.”

“That’s...incredibly powerful,” Adrien remarked, looking a bit breathless.

“It has its limits,” Tikki said. “I can only do so much…”

“That’s okay, you’re still quite interesting,” Adrien told her, and Tikki seemed pleased with the compliment as she landed in his hair.

“Okay, crash course on transforming and Kwamis complete,” Lady Noire said. “We need to go out and find Hawkmoth's latest victims. That should be the perfect time for you to get some practice, don’t you think?”

Tikki seemed excited, going to hide in Adrien’s breast pocket as they left the interrogation room together. Adrien still didn’t know what to make of this, but at the current moment, he needed to go do his job.

\---

Apparently, doing his job involved being dragged into a near pitch-black alley. The only things he could see were Lady Noire’s ring, her eyes, and the edge of the street where the lights were. He could feel Tikki nuzzle his cheek reassuringly, and he smiled.

“Here goes nothing,” he said quietly. “Tikki, spots on.”

Tikki zipped into one of his earrings, bright flashes of pink light enveloping his body as the same warmth from before wrapped around him. He felt a tingling sensation cover him as the sparks and warmth died down, and once it was over, he didn’t really feel any different.

Lady Noire was staring slightly, downright grinning.

“The suit looks good on you,” she said, extending her staff.

“Wait, that’s it? I don’t feel different.”

“Feel down by your waist,” she instructed. He did so, a slightly ribbed, tight fabric meeting his now gloved hands. His fingers brushed over a round, disc-like object, and he pulled it off of his waist.

Now that he was paying attention, he noticed his vision was a bit sharper. He caught a slight glint of a red-tinted metal object.

“What is this?”

“Your yoyo,” Lady Noire answered. “Remember when I said each bearer gets a unique weapon?”

“This is my weapon then,” he said. “I never thought a yoyo would make a particularly good weapon.”

“You have to use it creatively,” she said with a wink, before she pulled him close to her body. He instinctively clung on, and she extended her staff until it was much, much longer. Impossibly long.

Adrien gasped as she took them up well over the buildings they had previously been between, the new late-night lighting revealing that he was in a spotted jumpsuit, a black cropped jacket sitting snugly against his frame. Touching his face, he felt a very thin mask in place.

“Oh, I see,” he said, Lady Noire laughing. Adrien looked down at his yoyo again, noticing that it resembled a ladybug with its black spots. “Am I supposed to look like a ladybug?”

“Yes,” she said with a gentle laugh. “You’ll get used to it.”

“No, I like it, it’s fine,” he said, grinning at her. “Okay, so what now?”

“Use your yoyo to travel,” she instructed, suddenly holding him by the scruff of his jacket.

She proceeded to throw him up as high as she could in the air, and he was airborne before he could even blink. It was everything he could do to not immediately start screaming, and he instinctively threw his yoyo in the direction he wanted to go.

To his relief, it caught on a nearby building, and he felt himself swinging through the air with incredible speed. He started grinning again, the adrenaline rush making him energized and giddy as Lady Noire darted ahead, using her staff to propel her forward.

“Come on,” she called, gesturing for him to follow. Excitedly, he pulled the yoyo free and started to swing after her.

\---

Adrien and Lady Noire searched for a while, before something caught Adrien’s eye, near the waterfront.

“Hey, over here,” he called softly toward his new partner, who started following him as he made his way over to what he spotted.

It was a trail of blood, leading out of the nearby park and between a couple of buildings. He shuddered at the sight, grasping the yoyo in his palm tightly as she carefully entered the alley.

It was just one body this time, and Adrien couldn’t get a good look at it from the lighting he currently had, but he felt a slight tap on his shoulder.

“You can open your yoyo a bit, it should illuminate the area,” she said, her voice slightly strangled. She was staring at the body, looking nauseated.

“You can see it just fine?”

“Night vision,” she explained briefly. He didn’t push it, sliding the yoyo open as it glowed with a gentle luminance.

This was easily the most savage murder yet, he had decided.

The single victim was slumped up against the concrete wall, and it appeared to be a woman in very, very expensive designer clothing. Her hair was matted with so much blood, he couldn’t even tell what color it was. Shattered glasses and a crumpled hat laid near her body, and Lady Noire stiffened even more.

“This is the mayor’s wife,” she whispered weakly.


	6. The Widowed Mayor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The disturbing death of Audrey Bourgeois has the city's leader, and his daughter, devastated. Adrien needs to push for answers, quickly, before the killer strikes again. He finds many of the answers he's looking for in one of the most unlikely places, from someone who seems to know more than she's letting on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a long one, buckle up!

Adrien had decided to detransform while he contacted the police department, Lady Noire keeping an eye on the alley as he made his way over to the nearest phone he could find. Which was a rather cramped phone booth, but it would do. As he made his way inside, he shuddered slightly as he tried not to think about what could’ve happened to him merely hours ago.

“Are you okay?” Tikki asked, having come out of hiding and resting on his shoulder.

“I will be, in a bit,” he reassured her. “Right now I need to do my job, though. The mayor and his daughter need to know what happened.”

Tikki nodded, but Adrien felt comforted knowing that he had someone to actually check up on him now. It was a perplexing feeling, one he wasn’t used to. He picked up the phone, dialing for the police department as he took a shaky breath.

It didn’t take long to get ahold of dispatch, Adrien also requesting for no sirens and lights until their arrival. The last thing they needed was a scene for the entire city. Hanging up, he went back to the alley entrance, leaning against the wall.

“They’re on their way,” he said quietly into the darkness, hearing a slight sigh in response as Lady Noire emerged. She seemed a bit nauseated still, and seemed to be trying her best to keep it together.

“This one feels different,” she told him weakly. “I can feel it. The other murders were not nearly this...this bad.”

“You were there for quite a few of them, right? The aftermath at least.”

“Yeah,” she said, nodding. “Even the...bakery incident wasn’t this bad.”

He noticed the slight hesitation in her voice, but decided not to press her on it. They were both exhausted and stressed, and this discovery would only increase it tenfold. It was already past midnight, around 2:00 or so. He should be in bed. He figured Lady Noire was more accustomed to staying up late, until he caught her yawning too.

Eventually, four squad cars and a forensics van arrived. Adrien kept to the sidelines as they taped off the crime scene, and soon a very, very expensive luxury car pulled up at the curb of the crime scene. Adrien recognized the car immediately, the mayor stepping out of it confirming his suspicion. He looked understandably distraught, but managed to keep calm enough to simply follow a regular officer over to where Adrien and Lady Noire were standing.

“Andre, I’m sorry to see you under these circumstances,” Adrien said, his voice a bit worn. The mayor simply nodded at him, his gaze transfixed on Lady Noire.

“Were you the one who found her?”

“Adrien actually spotted her first,” Lady Noire said, her voice surprisingly gentle. “You have my condolences, I...I know the pain all too well.”

Andre seemed to visibly relax with that statement, looking back toward Adrien.

“How did you see her?”

“I saw her blood trail first,” Adrien answered. “We just followed the blood...and found her like that. I’m still not sure how…”

He looked to Lady Noire, who sighed.

“I’m...up to date with the fashion industry,” she said carefully. “I recognized a few unique ensemble pieces she had with her, that she had photos taken in. The sunglasses and her hat.”

“I won’t press you for details,” Andre reassured her, somehow managing a watery and weak smile. “I think I will need to confirm for sure, but…”

“I can go with you,” Lady Noire offered, straightening up. “If you’re going to see that...you shouldn’t face it alone...like I had to.”

Andre nodded, the two of them heading into the alley. Adrien stayed behind, he didn’t want to be there when the mayor really saw what had happened. With the lights illuminating the alley, he and Lady Noire had seen the multiple butterflies painted in the mayor’s wife’s blood. The sight had nauseated quite a few members of the forensics team, and Adrien didn’t even think he could stomach looking at the scene again. It was burned in his mind with a fiery intensity. Adrien absently slipped a hand into one of his jacket pockets, feeling a reassuring nuzzle and small hug from Tikki. It was enough to keep him grounded for what he knew was coming next.

Chloe wasn’t going to take the news very well, he knew that for sure. Adrien wondered if Andre had even told her what happened, but he knew he was going to have a long and painful talk with her.

Lady Noire and Andre emerged about five minutes later, silent tears rolling down the mayor’s cheeks as Adrien’s partner gently held his arm and hand. Adrien found the gesture to be kind and supportive, another surprise from the masked vigilante. A couple of days ago, he probably would have described her as a cheeky vagrant who knew more than she was letting on, but that definitely wasn’t even close to being the truth, he was discovering.

“Does Chloe know?” Adrien asked Andre when the duo were close enough, the mayor shaking his head.

“You know how much she adores her mother, how much she emulates her. This is going to...it will be hard. I know you’ve had a long night, but...I think you should help me tell her later.”

“I’ll be there,” he promised, Lady Noire walking him back to the car and sending him off. She walked over to Adrien, patting his shoulder.

“You need to go rest up,” she said. “We have a lot of work to do.”

“Right, I’ll see you soon,” he said, offering a gentle smile as he grasped her hand and squeezed it for a moment. She seemed to appreciate the gesture, giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder and a surprisingly warm smile as she went off on her own for the night.

What Adrien couldn’t figure out was why he was suddenly blushing wildly.

\---

Adrien nursed his coffee tiredly later in the morning, Tikki munching on a cookie he had laying around from the nearby bakery as he waited for his breakfast to cook. He yawned, glancing at the Kwami and smiling a bit.

“I hope I’m doing a good job at all this…”

“I think you’re doing just fine,” Tikki said, her tone cheerful and sweet. “You’ll get it in no time, don’t worry. It took her some time to get used to me too.”

“Her?”

“Lady Noire,” Tikki clarified, finishing her snack and going to rest on the counter closer to him. “I knew she was wanting to get a partner sooner or later, but I always thought she would give someone the ring instead.”

“That’s not exactly what it worked out to be though,” Adrien said, patting her head gently. “I’m not complaining though.”

She giggled, hovering near him a bit.

“Will you be okay today?” She asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he reassured her again, smiling back. “Especially with you there. You’re already helping me a lot, thank you.”

Tikki nodded.

“What was the mayor’s wife doing out there though?” She wondered aloud, Adrien pondering that question for a second.

“I know she goes to a lot of events and parties, she could’ve been returning from one of those,” he said. “We’re going to have to check with Andre about that though.”

She nodded again.

“That might be a good place to start,” she agreed. “Something tells me Hawkmoth was a bit sloppier this time, that could be beneficial to finding him. At least those people wouldn’t have died in vain…”

“You’re right,” he said. “Come on, we should get going…”

\---

The Le Grand Paris was easily the last place Adrien wanted to be at the moment, but the necessity of the situation made it impossible to avoid. Handing his car off to a valet, he entered the lobby.

He was immediately greeted by a bone-crushing, near-tackling hug from a young blonde woman dripping in gold jewelry and designer clothes, Adrien barely managing to return part of the hug when his very enthusiastic and bubbly childhood friend pulled away.

“Adrikins! Daddy told me you would be by,” she said happily, beaming at him. He found himself unable to return the smile, and hers faded after a moment.

“Adrikins?”

“We need to talk. Upstairs,” he said simply, but he kept his tone gentle and quiet. Chloe was normally a spoiled and insufferable person for most people to be around, but he always had a soft spot for her. She was the only friend he had growing up, and he knew what her softer side looked like. The two of them made their way up to the suite the family shared, stepping foot into the elevator as Chloe directed the operator to her floor.

“Daddy’s been acting strange this morning, and my mother hasn’t returned home from her party last night,” she said. “I think he’s a bit worried about her, is this what…”

“It’s part of it,” he answered. “It’s...complicated. I’ll tell you when we get up there, okay Chlo?”

She nodded, her wide blue eyes flicking to the door as it opened. They made their way into the family’s suite, Adrien closing the door.

Andre was sitting on the ornate couch, straightening up as the two of them entered the room. He was crying quietly again, holding a delicate gold watch that Audrey, his wife, had been wearing the night before. When Chloe saw the watch, she paused, her breath hitching as the implication dawned on her.

“D...daddy?”

“Chloe…” Andre said, his voice barely above a whisper, “she’s gone…”

\---

Chloe was resting alone in her room about an hour later, Adrien still rubbing the back of his neck and looking exhausted as he approached Andre.

“I...I know this is a difficult time,” he started, “but I need to ask you some questions about your wife.”

“I’ll do what I can,” he said. “But before I do, I...I need to ask you something.”

“What is it?”

“Did...that Noire girl do something to her?” Andre asked, his voice a bit shaken. Adrien’s eyes widened.

“No, absolutely not,” he said. “I can assure you that much. She was with me for almost the entirety of last night. And…”

“It wasn’t her for sure then, are you sure? I noticed that staff of hers…”

“The object that killed Audrey was a cane, not a staff,” Adrien said. “And...I saw him last night. If it weren’t for Lady Noire, Ha-The Butterfly would’ve had two victims last night…”

Andre paled, staring at Adrien.

“He...he went after you too?”

“Yes,” Adrien said, shuddering. “I mean it, I don’t think she had anything to do with Audrey’s death. I swear on my mother’s…”

Adrien shook his head slightly, sitting down on the couch. Andre sat down as well, signaling the butler to get them both something to drink as he patted Adrien’s shoulder.

“I’m glad you’re safe,” he said. “You’re like a nephew to me, Adrien. I know Chloe cares about you as well.”

“I appreciate it, but...we need to get back to my questions,” Adrien said, Andre nodding as the detective pulled out his notepad and pen.

“What kind of party did Audrey go to last night?”

“It was one of those socialite parties, some eccentric artist named...Jagged something? Jagged Storm? Not sure, I’ll need to-”

“I’ll look into it,” Adrien assured him, starting to write down everything he could. “What was the address?”

Andre gave it to him, and he jotted it down as he kept pressing with more questions. Audrey had attended the party by herself, having been driven in the mayor’s car and dropped off. There was supposedly alcohol at the event, which Adrien noted.

“I know they hired a lot of staff that night, maybe tracking them down would help,” Andre suggested. Adrien nodded, closing his book and standing to take Andre’s hand. The mayor brought him into a hug, which he gladly accepted.

“I’m going to figure out who did this to her, I swear,” he promised.

“I know you will, you’re a smart boy,” Andre said. “Just be careful.”

\---

More driving later, and Adrien showed up to a rather fancy ballroom-esque venue at the exact address that Andre had given him. He parked, getting out of the car and heading inside the building.

There was a small team of staff dismantling what remained of the party from the night before, and, to Adrien’s surprise, Nino was there directing a lot of them.

“Nino,” Adrien called out, moving over to him. He turned around, smiling a bit as he noticed Adrien.

“Oh, hey there,” he greeted. “This is the last place I expected you to be, what’s going on?”

“Maybe we should chat privately,” Adrien said, the volume of his voice lowering a bit as he closed the distance. “The Butterfly struck again last night, his latest victim attended the party here…”

“Most of the people here are my crew, don’t worry,” Nino reassured him, turning serious. “Who is it…?”

“Audrey Bourgeois,” Adrien said flatly, Nino pausing and looking a bit sickened.

“N...no way-”

“Nino? Adrien?” a familiar, feminine voice called, the two of them looking toward the source to see Marinette looking at them with a bit of concern. Adrien noted that she looked very exhausted, no amount of powder and makeup could hide the dark circles under her eyes, which looked duller than usual. Adrien felt concern rise in his chest as Nino spoke up.

“Audrey died last night,” he said, Marinette letting out a concerned squeak as she covered her mouth.

“W...what? S...she was just here last night-”

“You were here, Marinette?” Adrien pressed, getting his notepad and pen out. “What was Audrey doing? Do you know?”

“Audrey...was drunk,” Marinette admitted, looking sickened. “She left the party about five minutes before I did, we wrapped up at 22:30 or so...oh no…”

Nino went to comfort Marinette, who was shaking uncontrollably as she continued.

“W...what happened to her, Adrien?”

Adrien gulped slightly. He knew Marinette’s past, he didn’t want to send her into a spiral at the mention of her family’s killer, but he could see no way of beating around the bush.

“The Butterfly got her,” he said weakly, and Marinette paled. Her trembling stopped, and her gaze seemed fiery for a split second before she rubbed her temples.

“N...no way,” she murmured. “This is...doesn’t she have a daughter too? And I know your dad makes all her clothes, I could help identify her if you need me to, she had a two-toned party hat on and-”

“Marinette, breathe,” Adrien said, grasping her shoulders gently. “Tell me what you can. Did anyone follow her out?”

“No,” she said, shuddering. “I did see a strange man following her afterward though when I was waiting for my taxi…”

“Could you describe the man for me?”

“I didn’t get the best look at him,” she confessed. “He had a suit on, but it was too dark to see most of it...he had a cane.”

“This was after 22:30?”

“Yes,” she said weakly, looking back up. “So it’s her then, you’re sure?”

“The mayor identified her himself,” he said, though he felt a strange thought creeping up in the back of his mind. Lady Noire had been able to identify Audrey almost right away when they had arrived, despite her looking utterly unrecognizable to him, someone who had known her for years. “Did anyone else follow Audrey last night? A woman?”

“No, just the man from what I saw,” Marinette answered, her tone sounding...off to him. He couldn’t help his eyes narrowing a bit as he thought, and he anxiously ran a hand through his golden hair.

“Marinette, I’m not detaining you or arresting you, but I need you to come to the police station with me,” he said carefully, a few other details clicking into place as he looked back at her. He stole a glance at her ears, which had hoop earrings in them instead of her usual studs. He glanced at her hands, the same chunky ring on her finger from the last time he saw her. “I need you to look over some of the evidence with me. Can you do that?”

Marinette paused, Adrien’s silent accusation becoming clear as her face settled into a determined look. Good, she had gotten the message. Nino was still looking bewildered.

“I can do that, yeah,” she answered, her tone closely matching what he was expecting. Not illicit, not defensive, but that which he had hoped for. Knowingly.

“Adrien,” Nino interrupted. “Are you sure she isn’t in trouble? I can get her an alibi-”

“No, I know she’s not involved,” Adrien reassured him. “Like I said, I just need to go over some evidence with her. That’s all.”

Nino closed his mouth, nodding. Adrien and Marinette left the venue together, getting into his car.

“What gave me away?” Marinette asked after a few quiet moments together, Adrien sighing.

“You didn’t give anything away, I was just paying attention,” Adrien told her.


	7. Identity Crisis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A review of what they know points Marinette and Adrien to an old man who lives in the Ladybug Lounge...

Adrien and Marinette were sitting in traffic after their not-so-dramatic reveal, both Kwamis resting on the dashboard as Adrien sighed. The last few days had been nothing short of exhausting, but he was also grateful for the direction his situation had turned. Marinette gazed out the window, surprisingly calm despite being outed.

Her little Kwami resembled a black cat, complete with adorably large ears and big green eyes. Adrien could tell he was a lazy, free spirit. Tikki stuck close to him, looking between Adrien and Marinette for a while.

“Do you actually need me at the police station?” Marinette finally asked, breaking the silence. It was not accusatory, just inquisitive. Adrien figured he had earned her trust to an extent.

“Actually, yes,” he answered. “I was being serious about the evidence review. But I also want to talk about the obvious.”

Marinette looked over at him, her face softening a bit.

“You must think I’m pretty two-faced,” she said with a weak chuckle.

“Not at all, though I’m not going to forget that you just chucked me straight up in the air last night,” he joked, earning a slight chuckle from both her and the Kwamis. It helped to ease a bit of the pent-up tension that was at the ballroom.

“That was payback for teasing me at the police station,” she complained.

“I see,” Adrien mused with a playful tone. “And...I saw the way you handled Andre last night. I don’t think you’re two-faced, Lady Noire is just another part of you that you feel like you need to hide, isn’t it?”

Marinette paused, a thoughtful scowl on her face.

“I’m not sure if I should take that as a compliment, or an insult,” she said, gently scratching behind the cat Kwami’s ear, which he seemed to appreciate.

“Take it as a compliment,” the Kwami said, before directly addressing Adrien. “Also...do you happen to have any cheese on you? I’m hungry.”

“Not at the moment, but we can get something arranged,” Adrien promised, which didn’t seem to satisfy him, but the Kwami nodded. “What’s your name, by the way?”

“Plagg,” he answered simply, going to rest in Marinette’s lap as she absently patted his head.

“Do you think we’ll find the killer?” She asked as Adrien turned onto another street, and he gazed at the road as he pondered the same thing.

“I’m not sure, but now that we can properly put our heads together, it should be a lot easier,” he answered. “I do have to ask though, did you actually see Audrey last night before you came to meet up with me?”

“Yes, and I was also being honest about the man,” she said. “Now that I know who it might have actually been, I wish I would’ve shadowed him and stopped him…”

She absently played with her Miraculous, Adrien sighing gently. Marinette was definitely an open book, but in a language he couldn’t read. He figured it would take some time to learn how to read her properly, but in the meantime he yearned to ask her about more. Now was not the time, however. They needed to focus on finding Audrey’s killer.

The same killer who killed Marinette’s parents. Adrien could already feel the stakes rising significantly as he cleared his throat, and he could feel the ominous pressure that was Marinette’s searching gaze.

“How did it go, telling her family?”

“It...it was so hard,” he confessed. “I’ve known the mayor’s family for a long time, especially their daughter Chloe. They will need a lot of time…”

“How are you holding up?”

“That’s not important, I have a job to do,” he said, before he stole a glance at Marinette.

Her blue eyes were burning holes in his body, scowl deep as she crossed her arms.

“Adrien Agreste,” she scolded. “It is absolutely important. You can’t just walk into something like this and ignore your mental health.”

“How about you? You’re literally chasing your parents’ killer,” he jabbed back, but seemed to instantly regret it as Marinette’s expression and gaze fell. He felt a twang of guilt, but she spoke up before he could.

“I’ve had my time to grieve,” she said quietly. “I won’t be able to move on until he’s gone, but I’ve accepted reality. That’s what my master had me try for anyway…”

“Master?”

“The guardian,” she clarified. “The one who taught me everything...might be time to introduce you as well, Adrien.”

“That’s a good idea, Marinette,” Tikki agreed. “Especially that the two of you know each other now, that puts your identities at risk.”

“How so?”

“It’s less of a risk for me, but you have your father to worry about,” Marinette said quietly. “If Hawkmoth or anyone associated with him learned what we have...it would be painting a target on our backs.”

He hadn’t considered it before, but she was right. He figured the risk was way more significant if the killer knew he had the Miraculous.

“Do you think he would try to go after our Miraculous?” Adrien asked after another solid minute. They were almost at the police station.

“Absolutely,” Marinette answered. “No one should be bearing both these miraculous together, it’s dangerous.”

“You were doing exactly that, Marinette.”

“I’m a trusted bearer,” Marinette said quietly. “My master actually insisted on it, he was concerned. But that’s a very, very unusual case. Usually these Miraculous are under lock and key unless there’s a necessity.”

“The necessity being finding the butterfly Miraculous and taking it back to the Guardian.”

She nodded again, just as they pulled up. The Kwamis hid as they both got out, and Adrien held his arm out for Marinette to take. To his surprise, she took it, and he led her inside. There was a sense of...ease he hadn’t felt in a long time. Not since he lost his mother.

He led Marinette to where the majority of the evidence was being stored in the police station, an entire office room dedicated to the case. The most recent picture of Audrey’s corpse was pinned in the center of the cork board, and Marinette walked up to it, shuddering.

“18 butterflies,” she said weakly. “He plans on killing at least one more time, Adrien. I can feel it.”

“He has 17 victims so far,” he agreed, looking over each photo of each crime scene. “We need to find a common signature besides the butterflies, something we can use to help build a profile on him.

“All of his victims are somehow associated with Gabriel Agreste, right?” Marinette reviewed. “If you were close with the mayor’s family, I would assume Audrey would be significant as well.”

“She was one of father’s most reliable customers, and best client,” he said, writing “Agreste?” on the photo print. “My father won’t take this news well either, but I’m not going to be the one to tell him this time. “We both know that he has a target on his back right now, we need to figure out who the next victim will be.”

“I get the feeling...it’s you, Adrien,” Marinette said. “That’s what my gut is telling me, and it scares me.”

Adrien looked at her, looking at how her eyes shimmered in both fear and determination. He felt a light blush creeping on his face, and Adrien’s gaze met hers.

“You’re going to hate my idea then,” he decided.

“Your idea?”

“Use me as bait,” he decided, Marinette’s eyes widening.

“No. Absolutely not,” she snapped, the cat’s ferocity making the gleam enter her eyes again. Good, he had her fired up.

“Why not? We just met a few days ago, Marinette. I’m sure you can find someone to help you out in case something happens.”

“Adrien,” she snapped, her tone darkening dangerously. “We’re not resorting to that, understand? I won’t allow it.”

He noticed a slight blush creeping on her face, and he couldn’t help a smirk.

“What, did you fall in love with me or something?”

She opened her mouth to continue scolding him, before shutting it, and opening it again as her thought died on her lips. She turned beet red, scowling and looking away.

“Now is not the time to be teasing,” she complained after a moment, stammering slightly. So her nervousness from earlier wasn’t an act, he had just happened to catch her in a vulnerable moment. That helped ease his anxiety.

“What do you propose, then, my Lady?” He asked, though the tone was no longer teasing. She glanced over.

“Again, I want to introduce you to the guardian,” she answered. “We can go from there, he is...a lot older and wiser than he lets on. He could point us in the right place to start. Without endangering you.”

“Okay,” he agreed, Plagg resting on Marinette’s shoulder and looking at Adrien with a sour expression.

“Enough flirting, I’m hungry,” he complained, earning a chuckle from both bearers. Marinette went to go pick up another piece of evidence, turning it over.

It was a blood-stained wallet that had been found with the first victim, a young aspiring actress named Aurore. She flipped it open, sighing.

“Here it is,” she said weakly, holding up a business card from Gabriel Agreste’s company. “Her link. Where was she found?”

“Outside the radio broadcast station,” Adrien recalled. Marinette continued looking at the wallet thoughtfully, before shaking her head.

“We should head to the lounge, the Guardian is there,” she said. “Nino knows of him, but not about him. We should have privacy there.”

\---

Adrien pulled up to the lounge roughly an hour later. Marinette had called off her job to help with the party clean up earlier, so she had the night off. They both entered the building with the picturesque sunset aglow in the distance, Marinette gazing out at it for a moment.

“The city is still so pretty, despite the ugly things going on,” she said wistfully, before entering the lounge. Adrien remained silent, following her into the lounge. Adrien caught a glance of Nino and Alya sharing dinner together, Alya waving at them a bit as Marinette waved back, leading Adrien into the back hallway and taking him down almost to the end.

“This is his apartment,” Marinette said, knocking on the door. It swung open, revealing a short and simply dressed chinese man. Adrien noticed that he was wearing an ornate bracelet on his wrist, and the man seemed to look Adrien over briefly, spotting his earrings and immediately ushering them both inside.

“So, Marinette,” he started, his speech thickly accented. “You have some explaining you need to do.”


	8. The Old Man From The Mountains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien meets Master Fu, guardian of the Miracle box, and Marinette's mentor.

Adrien didn’t really know how to react to what was happening to him at that exact moment, having been dragged over to a small table and some cushions on the ground and ushered to sit down. Marinette stayed standing, anxiously pacing as the two Kwamis inexplicably came out of hiding. Whoever this man was, he was clearly in the know about the Miraculous.

The elderly man came back into the room from the tiny kitchen after about five minutes, wearing an oddly cheerful smile as he offered Adrien some tea. Not wanting to create any drama, he quietly accepted a cup of it as he turned to Marinette, speaking to her directly in Chinese.

“Marinette, come sit,” he called gently, and Marinette did as he asked. Adrien noticed that she was a bit more anxious than usual, and it seemed to be something the old man was expecting, gazing at her with a patient smile. “Your tea will get cold.”

“Right, sorry,” Marinette responded, in French. She made her way to sit with the other two, and Adrien noticed another Kwami...phase through the wall? That was new to him, he hadn’t seen Tikki or Plagg do that before. He kept silent as he watched master and pupil interact.

“You were supposed to give your potential partner the ring,” he said, his eyes crinkling slightly as he smiled. “What happened?”

Marinette scowled at the way he phrased it, the old man chuckling. He was teasing her, Adrien decided, unable to help a slight grin.

“Well, I just wished she would’ve taken me out to dinner first,” Adrien joked, earning a laugh from the old man and making Marinette a bit more flustered.

“Adrien!” She complained, the old man chuckling again.

“I tease, dear,” he said warmly. “I would still like to know what happened, if possible.”

“The man who stole the butterfly Miraculous, he attacked Adrien recently,” Marinette said. “I was transformed with the ring at the time, and I...I tried to catch him, but I let my anger blind me. I’m sorry…”

The room went solemn, the turtle Kwami resting on her shoulder comfortingly as Tikki went and hovered near her, also looking concerned. The old man simply nodded his head.

“You’re young,” he said. “Even if you hadn’t experienced tragedy, you still have a lot to learn when it comes to emotional temperance. That comes with time, dear.”

“I-I...I know, Master Fu,” she said weakly. “Sorry, I...I’m still working on it.”

He nodded, urging her to drink from her tea as he turned his attention to Adrien.

“Well, I can certainly see that you still have compatibility with Tikki, despite the sudden circumstances,” Fu noted. “How did you feel when it came to your new abilities the first time?”

Adrien considered the question for a moment. Being transformed was exhilarating, something he enjoyed despite the circumstance he had been in to receive them in the first place. He thought about how brief his relationship with Tikki was already, but she was already a comfortable presence.

“It felt...right,” he answered, still trying to find the words to describe it. “I’m not sure how to describe it, but I feel like I can do my job a bit better with Tikki’s help.”

Tikki smiled, flying up to Fu enthusiastically.

“No need to worry, master,” she said happily. “Adrien did fine with Marinette guiding him, I think he will get a firm grasp on it in no time.”

“Well,” Fu said, his eyes warming a bit more. “An endorsement from a kwami is all we need to know. Marinette, you chose well.”

“Th...thank you, Master,” Marinette managed, smiling slightly. “Should I still give him the ring?”

“No,” Fu decided, looking thoughtful. “We’ll see how they do for now. We can always adjust if we need to.”

Marinette nodded, her brows knitting together in determination.

“That’s not the only reason we came, Master,” she said. “I wanted to get your input on some evidence Adrien and I went over, about the earlier murders.”

“The first one to be exact,” Adrien said. “Miss Boreale. That young actress who was found outside of a radio station when this whole fiasco began.”

“How do you know all of this information?” Fu asked, raising a brow. His Kwami stuck close to his bearer, keeping an eye on the old man.

“I work at the police station as a detective,” Adrien clarified. “I have access to all that information since I was put in place to investigate the Bazin family murders, and more recently, the mayor’s wife’s murder.”

“That makes sense,” Fu said, nodding. “Marinette has been feeding information carefully to the police with my input and guidance, but now I fear that may have only placed her in danger…”

“No,” Marinette insisted. “If anything, we’re a lot closer to getting what we need than before. I was careless, none of this was your doing.”

“How did Adrien find out?” Fu asked, Adrien clearing his throat awkwardly as Marinette smiled sheepishly.

“He’s...observant,” she said with an awkward sigh. “Scarily observant, I’m lucky he only wants to help solve this…”

“I would expect no less from someone in this line of work,” Fu said, looking a bit impressed. “What gave her away?”

“Mostly minor details, and paying attention to what she was wearing,” Adrien answered. “The earrings are easier to pass off, since they blend in better. But the ring is very distinctive. I’m guessing your bracelet on your right wrist is also a Miraculous, if I had to make a guess that is.”

“You’d be correct,” Fu said, nodding. “The Miraculous ultimately adapts to whatever the taste of its bearer is, helping it blend seamlessly into their clothing and helping the bearer go unnoticed as they walk around in life.”

No one had noticed Adrien’s earrings, it was true. Adrien had pictures of him and his mother in his office where he had diamond studs in his ears. The team never really paid it any mind once they had learned Adrien was born from wealth.

“However, it is unusual for a young man to have his ears pierced,” Fu continued.

“My mother insisted when I was a child,” Adrien said with a shrug. “Some of my earliest baby photos were me in dresses, I think she secretly wanted a daughter, and she got stuck with me.”

Adrien flashed a cheeky smile, getting a chuckle from Fu.

“Focus, boy,” he warned. “You two mentioned a common link to each other from the last time Marinette checked in with me.”

“The link is Gabriel Agreste, somehow,” Marinette said. “I don’t know if he’s directly involved or if this is a weird coincidence, or even if the killer is trying to frame him, I don’t know. But everything the evidence points to suggests that Gabriel is a big factor in this.”

Fu nodded, sipping his own tea for a moment.

“Perhaps investigating Gabriel would be a good start,” Fu said. “What was this Aurore girl’s link to Gabriel?”

“She had one of his business cards in her waller,” Adrien explained. “She was found with a couple of designer pieces, I’m thinking she was a regular client of my father’s.”

Fu paused.

“Your father’s? Gabriel is your father?”

Adrien nodded, Marinette swallowing slightly as Fu looked over at her. He sighed a little.

“Adrien Agreste, that makes a bit more sense now,” he decided. “You don’t get along very well with him, but he is your father. If Hawkmoth went after you, would you consider the man behind the mask to be your father?”

“Absolutely not,” Adrien said instantly, Marinette scowling a bit. Adrien figured she disagreed, which he wasn’t able to completely rule out. She had made a few valid points a couple of nights ago, and they were chasing murder after murder at this rate. It was exhausting, and Adrien needed to get the case moving along reasonably again. “I mean...it’s definitely something we need to check, but I don’t think he would come after me like that. If anything...he still wants me to move back in with him despite wanting to be on my own.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure, Adrien,” Marinette said, sighing.

“It sounds like you need to confront him,” Fu decided, sighing. “Keep an eye out for the butterfly’s brooch. It’s very difficult to spot when it’s disguised, but not impossible. Adrien, if you go seek information from your father, take Marinette with you.”

Adrien nodded. He didn’t really like thinking about the fact that his own father was quickly becoming a suspect or person of interest, but at this rate, he needed to stop the killings happening all over Paris. He was about to lose his mind, and he wanted to be at least a little productive before he completely lost it.

“Okay, so we confront him then,” he decided. “Let me get in touch with father’s assistant, Marinette. I think she mentioned some kind of party this weekend at the mansion, that would be a good time to slip in and talk to father.”

Fu stood, collecting the empty kettle and tea cups from the two younger adults, before entering the kitchen to rinse them off. Marinette rubbed the back of her neck as Adrien spoke.

“Is he your grandfather?”

“No, he’s too old to be my grandfather,”Marinette answered, Tikki stealing a cookie from a nearby tray. “If we were related, he would probably be my great-great grandfather, maybe.”

Adrien paused.

“Wait...how old is he?”

“Almost 190,” Marinette said sheepishly. “Being a guardian expands your life expectancy by quite a bit, it’s not too unusual.”

“Is he also Chinese?”

“Not sure, but he got his training in Tibet,” Marinette answered, running a hand through her hair. “There used to be a temple in the mountains at the base of Nepal, I don’t know what happened to it though, he won’t talk about it.”

“Maybe he doesn’t remember it well,” Adrien mused, Plagg shaking his head.

“It’s a sensitive topic,” he said. “He will tell you both when he’s ready to, just not now.”

Marinette nodded, but Adrien wasn’t satisfied with that answer. Before he could press for more information from Plagg, there was a knock at the apartment door. Marinette stood to cautiously answer it, the Kwami hiding as the door swung open. Alya was there, panting and looking a mixture of excited, scared, and determined.

“The butterfly struck again,” she said breathlessly. “But this girl survived..”


	9. The Italian Charlatan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens as Marinette, Alya, and Adrien all meet Lila Rossi, the daughter of an esteemed Italian politician visiting Paris. With growing political turmoil on everyone's mind, staying focus on what matters at that moment becomes even more difficult.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure how much I wanted to include the Nazi occupation of France in this fic, but screw it. I'm going in. Enjoy~!

Survived. Someone survived an attack from him.

This was just the break Adrien felt he needed. One quick glance at Marinette revealed that she felt the same way, looking at him breathlessly as she gazed back at Alya.

“Are you sure? How did you find this out?” She asked, looking a mix of excited and apprehensive.

“I heard a scream outside, Nino did too,” Alya answered, grabbing both her and Adrien by the wrist as her long, thick brown hair bobbed dramatically. Adrien resisted the urge to pull his wrist away, but Marinette seemed used to the contact as they were both hastily led outside.

A small crowd had gathered in the street, where a young woman was lying, and wailing loudly. Adrien’s eyebrow arched slightly at the sight, but he shook off the expression as he approached.

The woman was small, slender, and had a pretty rich tan. She was wearing a grey dress with a muted red overcoat, one of her shoes apparently kicked off a while back. She pushed her thick, brown hair out of her face, revealing acid green eyes and an expression of fear and sadness that felt...slightly off to Adrien for some reason. He couldn’t place it, but he wasn’t about to judge. People handled their encounters and the aftermath with Hawkmoth differently, Marinette was rather violent and emotional proof of that.

“Miss, what happened?” He asked, kneeling down as he helped her sit up. Marinette stayed near, procuring an embroidered handkerchief from her small purse. It had tiny pink cherry blossoms on it.

“Oh...oh it was horrible…” she whimpered in a thick accent, Adrien couldn’t seem to place it though. “I was taking a shortcut down the alley to come to the lounge, but I saw...I saw a man following me. He had some kind of cane weapon…”

“Miss?” Marinette tried softly, her voice moving down to a soothing tone as she offered the embroidered cloth. The woman took it, dabbing at her eyes.

“S-sorry, I just...I ran so fast, I don’t know how I made it out of there,” she whimpered. “I could see it in his eyes, he wanted to hurt me...but why?”

“Who are you, miss?” Adrien pressed slightly, feeling his hands automatically gravitate toward his pocket notebook and pen as he procured them. He didn’t wanna miss any details, and neither did Alya, who also readied herself to take notes. Alya was waiting for more information with baited breath, and Adrien made a mental note to make sure Alya didn’t do anything drastic.

“L...Lila Rossi,” she said weakly. “I...can we get out of the street? I need to call my mother.”

“Sure thing,” Marinette said, helping her stand up carefully. Adrien noticed that her face was a bit blank, a slightly concerned expression tugging the corners of her mouth. He thought that maybe she was considering the information they knew so far, mentally comparing what she knew to the woman’s current story so far. Adrien followed them into the lounge, wanting to find out more.

It didn’t take long for Nino to catch on to what needed to be done, quietly ushering the remaining patrons out of the lounge as Adrien caught Fu standing nearby in the corner of his eyes. The old man’s gaze was unreadable, and he was fiddling with his miraculous on his wrist.

Marinette and Nino got Lila seated, but Marinette seemed to back off slightly as Lila dabbed at her eyes again.

“Miss, I’m a detective with the Paris police force,” he explained. “Can you give me more details as to what happened to you?”

“I’m staying here with my mother, we’re from Italy,” Lila explained, sniffling a bit as she wiped at her eyes one more time. Adrien noticed she was getting mascara all over it. “I was looking to get settled into the area and make some friends, and some of mama’s friends at the embassy recommended this place. I just...I never thought I would be attacked out of nowhere…”

“And in broad daylight too,” Adrien added, scowling slightly as he scribbled that down. That was outside of Hawkmoths usual MO, but they still had a lot to learn. Marinette’s face was a thoughtful stare as she bit her lip.

“Y-yeah,” Lila continued, not seeming to notice their expressions as she continued.

“Could you describe the man for me?” Adrien asked. “I know that remembering it might be a bit scary, but I need you to give me what you can.”

“I...I think he was about medium height? Wearing a navy blue...jumpsuit thing. He had a black ski mask on…”

Marinette scowled slightly at the information, as did Fu, Adrien saw as he peeked. Adrien himself didn’t feel convinced. Hawkmoth wore violets and purples, and wore a grey patterned mask made of leather. The only thing that matched was the cane.

He glanced at Marinette, who shrugged slightly.

“I...I also saw Lady Noire...person, maybe? I think so. I didn’t get a good look at her, sorry,” she whimpered. Marinette’s brows shot high up, as did Alya’s. “I think she was trying to help him…”

“I don’t think that was Lady Noire,” Adrien said. “It doesn’t fit her MO. She’s been actively assisting the police department with the investigation, and she doesn’t operate during the daytime unless there’s a distinct crime scene.”

He caught a small scowl grace Lila’s lips before it disappeared. An odd expression for someone who was supposed to be scared. Marinette looked like she really, _really_ wanted to say something, and Adrien was glad she was keeping her mouth shut.

Alya was right there, after all, and she was eating it all up as she wrote it down.

“I agree with Adrien there,” she said. “However, I’m not just going to dismiss that you saw two people trying to come after you.”

“Right,” Adrien said, nodding. “Also the description doesn’t exactly...match him, from other witness testimonies. Perhaps a copycat with an accomplice?”

“I hope not, Paris is scary enough as it is,” Lila said, sniffling again and hugging herself. Adrien felt a sneaking suspicion, but he decided to play it cool as he gave her a reassuring smile.

“Does your mother have any contacts within Paris’s law enforcement? Maybe anyone affluent?”

“I...I think she mentioned the Agrestes at one point?” Lila tried, rubbing her forehead as Adrien scribbled that down. Finally, another consistent detail about this. “I know Gabriel Agreste, he has a son but I’ve never met him.”

Adrien made another mental note to talk to his father about that, nodding. Marinette, however, didn’t seem to be buying it as she looked at Adrien with a mixture of annoyance and concern.

“Well, he’s right here,” Alya confirmed, Lila blinked, looking at Adrien with a confused expression.

“What?”

“Adrien Agreste,” Marinette clarified, pointing at Adrien as she forced her expression back to a neutral state. “Adrien works for the police department.”

“Not as a model? That’s not…”

“What you heard, yeah, I got this job about two years ago. My father wasn’t happy about the decision,” Adrien said, raising a brow at Lila. Her conviction felt more than off, and she definitely wasn’t holding up to Marinette’s scrutiny if he had to describe the conversation so far. Adrien knew that sometimes people would embellish a bit during a witness testimony, it’s not too unusual. Alya seemed to be catching on to the duo’s trains of thought as she forced herself to become composed.

“Miss Rossi, do you mind if I put any of this information into print?” she asked carefully. “I’m following the development of this case, perhaps publishing the details might help jog other witnesses’ memories.”

“Oh, definitely,” Lila said, a bit of enthusiasm showing through. “It’s fine...could I call my mother please? I need to be picked up…”

\---

Adrien, Marinette, and Alya watched as the woman was taken into a rather expensive-looking car, tiny flags and everything. The distinctive red, white, and black swastika pattern was all Adrien needed to feel his blood boil slightly. Marinette seemed solemn, Alya’s face stony.

“Explains a little bit more about her,” Alya said quietly. “Nino and I are lucky, having the business at least.

Adrien sighed.

“I have a lot of information to go over,” he said, sighing. “But please tell me you’re not taking her testimony too seriously, it could have just been a civilian and his wife fed up with the occupation.”

“Plausible,” Marinette said, her lips pressing together in a deep scowl as she watched the car drive off. Adrien could see the cogs in her head turning. “Adrien, you’re going to see Lady Noire about this, right?”

“Definitely, just need to run into her,” he said, putting his notes and anger away for the moment. “In the meantime, can I talk to you privately?”

She nodded, the trip heading inside of the lounge as Adrien led her back to Fu’s apartment. It was only apparent now that something was up with the Rossi woman. They entered it, Fu having already returned to his place and shutting the door behind them with an audible click.

Plagg, Tikki, and Fu’s kwami immediately sprang out of hiding, with various levels of excitement and anger on her face. Tikki in particular was fired up.

“Adrien, I don’t like that girl,” she said. “She...something is wrong here, I can feel it!”

Plagg nodded, hovering lazily. Marinette frowned.

“I was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt, but seeing her get into that scum’s car…” she muttered. “Adrien, I’m so glad you don’t have to work with… _them_ at all.”

“It’s a blessing I take in stride most days,” Adrien agreed. “I think I would punch one if I was forced to work with them. I hate them.”

“Focus, you two,” Fu said. “Our priority is getting that Miraculous back, first and foremost. We can worry about how to handle the occupation once we don’t have a rogue Miraculous owner terrorizing innocent people.”

Marinette nodded, sitting down to prevent herself from pacing. Her hands fluttered uneasily, her fingers running over the ring absently as Plagg rested on her shoulder.

“Right, that was something else I wanted to talk to you about, Adrien,” she said quietly. Her eyes flitted up to meet his, fiery and fierce. “We’re going to get rid of that problem once and for all once this is done and over with.”

“So...what does that mean for me?” Adrien asked, Fu smiling.

“You get to work with Tikki longer than you initially thought,” he said. “Wayzz and I will provide training, of course, but the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous are traditionally brought out in time of social and political turmoil. The occupation counts.”

“And it’s getting worse, I can feel it,” Marinette said. “Even working two jobs, I’m finding it difficult...to get by.”

“Your resilience is inspiring, but it also saddens me,” Fu said quietly.

“They’re planning on rolling out ration coupons,” Marinette warned. “It’s going to be more difficult for Alya and Nino to live if we don’t do something.

Adrien definitely felt his chest puff up slightly at that. Alya being an independent journalist was just painting a target on her back, he didn’t blame her for sticking to crime scene reporting. Anything else under the regime was too risky.

“I say we disregard Miss Rossi’s testimony, for now,” Fu decided. “It seems entirely unrelated. Do you know if she knows your father, Adrien?”

“I hope not, I wouldn’t want him associating with the regime in Germany in any way,” he said, feeling angry even just answering the question. He felt Tikki tuck herself in his neck comfortingly as he sighed. “I’ll be sure to ask him when I can.”

Fu nodded, looking at both of them.

“Keep your heads down in the meantime, focus on finding Hawkmoth before he learns how to recruit allies. This could be a disaster.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a huge sucker for mysteries, hopefully I can keep at this on a consistent enough schedule. Please bear with me, I don't have a beta reader for this series. Enjoy~!


End file.
